LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Tarnished) & Most Of This Weekend's Hard Rock Concert Previews!!

It may not be the Halloween weekend quite yet, but things are sufficiently busy on the hard rock front to push this weekend's previews to two posts! As such, we'll look at Saturday's Pillory and Bone Yard 225 shows next, plus some extra upcoming show announcements. Here's what you should know to lead off this weekend, including SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS!

Sault Michigan hard rock/classic metal quartet Tarnished will return to The Rapids Lounge at the Sault Ste. Marie Kewadin Casino TOMORROW & SATURDAY NIGHT! Apologies for the short notice, Tarnished first announced these shows via their Facebook page earlier today, but they had been listed on Kewadin's entertainment page previously (there hasn't been as many hard rock bookings there in 2025, so there have been admitted lapses for checking it on my part). TOMORROW & SATURDAY's bookings are effectively the long-delayed rescheduling of their planned February concert weekend there that was cancelled due to the ransomware attack that affected all Kewadin Casinos locations. They've been to the St. Ignace branch since, but not the Soo, so it is good to see them finally get re-booked at The Rapids Lounge after eight long months! As such, these will be their first Sault Kewadin gigs in just over a year.

Of course, they're booked on a good weekend, as fans who want to keep the live music rolling after the Trixter concert on Saturday (more on that soon) can head from the theatre to the lounge, and Tarnished definitely have lots of 1980s metal in their back pocket! Alex, Josh, Chris, and Ron take the stage TOMORROW & SATURDAY at 9:00 PM with 21+ age limits and no cover charges. Visit the above links for more details, and here's Tarnished live!

Next up, let's head to Sault Ontario, where local classic/hard rock cover quintet Headrush will end their recent break by rocking The Esquire Club TOMORROW & SATURDAY NIGHT! This weekend's shows will be the first from the Johns, Wes, Gino, and Frank since they capped off Rotaryfest Stage 1 in July, making this a somewhat delayed summer hiatus. Last seen at The Esquire Club back in May, this talented veteran quintet have promised "tons of new and favourite tunes" this weekend, so make th pilgrimage to this popular Second Line West venue for all of the action! Note that Headrush have since announced that they'll be playing at a stag & doe in November, but generally, I don't cover stags & does on here due to their hyper-personal nature, unless explicitly marketed and promoted as a public event (like the recent Inner City Surfers reunions). Tomorrow and Saturday night's concerts are at 9:30 PM with 19+ age limits and no announced cover charges.

Visit the official Facebook event page for more details, and for a preview, here's a new video of Headrush (no space) at Rotaryfest! This video was shot by attendee Kevin Girardi and shared to their Facebook group at the time, which I apologize for missing until now. Works for preview purposes though! The 89 seconds-long video features the guys closing their set with AC/DC's "Whole Lotta Rosie" (remember, Who Made Who preceded them). What we hear is well performed, with John Anderson nailing Bon's vocal style, and the fans on the floor (well, lawn) are definitely partying it up, so give this video a look below!

Also this weekend, local classic/hard rock singer/guitarist Tym Morrison has a double header on SATURDAY, starting with yet another Misty's Fifties matinee before playing a nightcap at The Fraternal Order Of Eagles Club! It's not overly common where Tym plays two distinct concerts on the same day, but fans in the west end and in Steelton will have double the chances to check out his stacked setlist and clear-as-day talents on vocals and guitar, so don't miss out if some acoustic classics pique your interest! These are Tym's last scheduled shows for October 2025. The busy Saturday slate begins at Misty's on Second Line West at 3:00 PM, before Tym heads off to Aerie #3991 on Wellington Street West for an 8:00 PM start time. A 19+ age limit is more likely at Misty's, and neither show has an announced cover charge. Visit the official Facebook event pages linked here for more details, and here's Tym live!

Finally for weekend concert preview post #1, we'll bookend things back in Sault Michigan at the local Kewadin Casino, where The Spirit Of 1989 Tour descends upon The Dreammakers Theater for a night of hair and glam metal classics on SATURDAY NIGHT! Fittingly taking place on the same night as The Hair Scare on Rock 101 (Scott Cook will be broadcasting live from Kewadin for this concert, as you'd expect), this concert will be headlined by the local debut of New Jersey glam metal standouts Trixter, best known for hits like "Give It To Me Good" and "Surrender". Some readers may recall seeing bassist P.J. Farley backing up Mr. Big's Eric Martin's acoustic Kewadin show in February 2020, but the full Trixter will be fun for hair metal fans! Seventeen years after the cancelled Skid Row show at Runway Park in Sault Ontario that they were to have opened, Illinois hair metal quartet Enuff Z'Nuff will finally play here as co-headliners too.

Look for classic cuts like "Mother's Eyes" and "Fly High Michelle" in their set, while Hollywood's own Pretty Boy Floyd (of "I Wanna Be With You" fame), and the more modern hair revival group Permacrush will round out this stacked bill. A 7:00 PM and all ages show, tickets remain available in the center sections from the fourth row and back ($33) and in close rows in the left/right sections plus standing room only ($25)  at this link, at the in-person box office, or at 1-800-KEWADIN. Hair metal does well at Kewadin, let alone at such an affordable rate for this amount of bands, so keep this show in mind on Saturday! Visit the official Facebook event page for more details, and here's Trixter live!

That's all for now, but stay tuned for our Bone Yard 225 and Pillory previews (and more) next! Thanks everyone!